Since its launch in December 2010, Healthy People 2020 has been supporting the achievement of a broad set of national objectives for improving the health of all Americans based on a 10-year schedule set to conclude in year 2020. Healthy People 2020 comprises 42 topic areas and nearly 600 objectives in total.

On April 10-11, the 2012 National Health Promotion Summit was held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC. The event, which promoted improving the nation’s health through innovative preventive measures, drew heavily upon Healthy People 2020 as a model for encouraging public health prevention initiatives. A panel session at the meeting, entitled “Preparing the Workforce for New Public Health,” highlighted the need for further training and educating medical students in areas focused on the realities of modern health priorities. Panelists suggested incorporating Healthy People 2020 into medical school coursework in order to support these priorities and promote the idea of a sustainable and collaborative approach to health care.